Sorry about the late update! AP testing, grad... I was busy. D: Again, my apologies and I hope that none of you mind. :D

About all your questions... I'll answer them eventually. I swear! :D It all seems a bit messed up right now, but it's fine. Especially this chapter... I forgot I owed you guys an explanation and I twisted it up a bit more... I swear I'll answer the whole Daiyo-Tatsuki thing next chapter. :D

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach. Promise! XD

Bright iridiescent hues on a white wall

Blue majorelle

Violet lilacs

Cold aquamarine ice

Let them forget that they had breathed

x- Mirrors into Memories - x

Tatsuki

- Scenes: Part I -

The sky was embroiled with dark crescents, makeshift clouds, tampered with by the filtered rain that endowed the mourning world below with pearl-like tears, a morning sky's early dew.

Footsteps rang across plated metal, deep and resounding with their urgency, breaking the tranquility of dawn. Panic. Laboured breathing echoed in the empty streets. A lone street-light flickered and died in light of the rising day.

Saffron streaks flashed across the sky; the night's black pallor lightened to a faint gray darkened with dew. Seconds passed to minutes; minutes to hours. Time slid in passing hour hands past dilated violet eyes.

Deep impressions of the welts of a pair of shoes formed in soft clay. Gravel crumbled to black-gray grains of color; a foot kicked out haphazardly at a street curb.

She was running, a drifting shadow in a world of impressionable darkness. Nothing more than a heaving dying phantom in a realm in which differations between different shapes of darkness could not be made out. A life of decay, death, deceit. Whole entities of confusion, chaos. A separate universe of misery, panic, regrets.

Tatsuki Arisawa. Vice-Captain of Division Five. Prestigious, progidious, respected... Each step, each breathless jump down a marbled staircase, was another deep echo, a wide ripple in her shattering reputation, her breaking efforts.

She could save him. The sole thought lingered in her mind, subject to ruthless attacks by her conscious, and yet, oddly, right. Just. What could be was not necessarily wrong. What was, she found, was not necessarily right. The world was divided into nothingness; there existed no sense of black and white, pure rights and pure wrongs. She could save him. One life in the lives that existed in infinity; was it worth it?

Shadows broke out against the concrete ground; the dark silhouette of a single person against the dawning light.

Her heart lightened, despite the sudden danger of the situation that had spiked at his prescence. Eyes focused, pupils dilated. The muscules localized around her mouth tightened in a miniscule triumphant smile.

The world was lost; he was found.

: x x x x :

The faint, almost unwelcome, scent of pines prickled at the vague edges of her thoughts. Sunlight, in the odd distorted colors of sepia, colored the room in a mocking homely atmosphere. Windows rattled at the premonition of darkness.

"One word, Tatsuki." A distinctively masculine voice, saturated by the dull ease of impending night, called. "There's a file left."

Tatsuki turned, lips pulled up in wry humor, as she slowly faced the Kurosaki, the current heralded Captain of the Division. "It's yours; there's a tab there marked for you."

Ichigo shook his head in an emphatic dissent. "It's for you. The tab's signed for me, but the packet inside is disclosed for you. It was meant to be kept away from messengers and passed directly into the Division."

"What for?" Amaranthine eyes swept speculatively at the unassuming file placed atop the birchwood table. "What is it?"

"It contains mission details." The four words broke her out of her idealistical thoughts with a force nearly equivalent of the ignition of dynamites. "An execution of an apparent serial killer. DT Killer of Twentieth. Have you heard of him?"

"No." Dark bangs of hair trembled as she shook her head dismissively. "Twentieth Killer? He's killed twenty people? Civilians or something?" Tatsuki paused, speculatively turning to the Kurosaki. "It's important to exterminate him, but I don't really see why it needed the direct pass into our Divisions. Don't people get this stuff all the time?"

"Ordinarily, yes." Ichigo paused, the hesitation faint in embellishing the sincerity of his words. "Only, the DT Killer is known for killing seated officers. 20 seats."

A moment of silence ensued as Tatsuki allowed the information to rest comfortably on her mind. The killing of civilians was nothing, a trifling matter to be resolved by the makeshift police. The killing of seated Shinigami, however, was a danger; a threat against the might of Soul Society. Tatsuki paused, analytically observing the circumstances before the reticence broke in light of her brisk, if not reluctant, response. "Give me the file, Ichigo."

The Kurosaki leaned back in his chair, fingers snatching at empty air before seizing hold of the file. Two deep crescents formed on the otherwise unmarred surface, as he took hold of it, casual as ever, as he handed Tatsuki the papers.

"He's only begun killing last month." Ichigo began meditatively, brow furrowed in grooves across his forehead. "But he's already killed five seated officers. Sou-taichou isn't sure if he's trying to bait Soul Society or lull us into a sense of false security with the low-seat kills."

"Hence the reason why they're sending a vice-captain after him." Tatsuki murmured. The file clicked open. "A precaution."

Hazel eyes narrowed, pupils slitted against lighted retinas. "He's a legimitate Shinigami."

"So I can see." Tatsuki replied tersely. "A standard information protocol. There's nothing much here to see, Ichigo." Violet eyes shuttered. "I'm not really sure what your point is."

"But it's more than the sou-taichou's typical modus operandi, Tatsuki." New sharpness, outlined with new tints and perspectives, allayed the sheer force in his voice. The sepia tint that saturated the room waned. "About DT. I went by his school records. It's odd, really."

"And since when've you studied Latin?" Tatsuki rolled her eyes. "The sou-taichou isn't at fault here. Who is the guy, anyways?"

"Sou-taichou made a wrong judgement call on this one." Ichigo sighed, his head shook in an non-communicative response. Narrowed hazel eyes looked up to gauge her reaction. "DT's his initials. From what I hear, his name's Touri Daiyo."

A moment of stilled pause, abeyance in a world of chaos.

And then the file clattered to the ground in a mute testimony of outrage at the chaotic world that bloomed and flourished into color around it.

: x x x x x :

"Tatsuki?" An incredulous voice, no more audible than a whisper, trembled into the darkness of the lighting morning. A new voice in a familiar reticient face. The sky burned a slate gray. "Tatsuki? It's you, isn't it?"

Tatsuki turned, eyes riveted on the figure before her. Violet lilacs clashed against slivers of aquamarine ice. "And you're still Daiyo, aren't you?"

The figure paused before stepping forward, no longer a silhouette; an embodied figure. A gaunt shape. Tatsuki averted her eyes. "You can't be here."

"I've been deployed to kill you."

The figure stepped backwards lithely, a creature of his own in the dark world of chaos and blood. Metal brushed against the silver steel of his katana. Bubbles of carbon exhaled into the air; a sigh. "I should've expected as much."

Amaranthine hues flickered in the burning sky. Metal thundered against the cratered surface of gravel. "My patrol unit is circling the Western Hemisphere. They're not aware that you're here."

"You've isolated the resources?" The figure paused, incredulous. A hint of mocking surprise at the ludicrous circumstances that encircled them. "Was that wise?"

A pause. "I've decided." Lone street-lights glittered in the darkness, flickering as morning dew drenched the pale metal neck suspended in the air. "I'm not going to kill you."

The sky lightened; past its billowing menacing gray to majorelle blue. The wind whistled; blew in torrents. The world whirled furiously on its axis.

: x x x x x :

"The patrol has been completed. No signs of disturbances have been noted." The voice broke off, pausing to regain its thoughts. "Patrol status unsuccessful."

The other figure in the room sighed, despite the heavy saturation of moisture that dampened the air. "Casualties?"

"None. No crime activity occured in the direct vicinity." Tatsuki hated lying, as a fundamental principle. But it was necessary. If her aberrations were to be found, the death penalty would pale in comparison to the merit of her crime. "We don't believe he's residing in the Western Hemisphere."

Ichigo nodded mechanically, the movement dull and placid against the dark backdrops. "It was to be expected. DT was in the Southern Hemisphere before your patrol was in place; he killed Kurotsuchi's Fifth seat. Kurotsuchi's furious; apparently, DT blew up one of his experimental labs in the process."

Cold fear constricted her throat. "Didn't Kurotsuchi-taichou retiliate?"

Ichigo laughed dryly. "He tried." A pause. "Touri disappeared before the Division was even aware of the murder. The body was found in the Eastern Hemisphere hours later."

The Eastern Hemisphere. Her Hemisphere. "You've found nothing?"

"Nothing of merit." Ichigo shrugged. "The next patrol is tomorrow. Eastern Hemisphere."

Tatsuki nodded. "Same patrol schedule?"

"No; Sou-taichou's slotted a new one. You'll get the message by hell-butterfly by around noon."

Violet eyes flickered, concerned. "Anything else I should be notified of?"

Flaxen strands of citrus-orange hair trembled in an uncertain shake. "Not that I'm aware of." Hazel eyes blinked in startled surprise. "Zaraki recently issued a request to send out his own squads against Touri, but it shouldn't bother you. Zaraki promised to not interfer with your own squad."

"Zaraki-taichou?" Sweat beaded down her neck in icy drops of perspiration. "Who did he file the request to?"

"Me." Ichigo paused, critically analyzing the files before him. "Sou-taichou pronounced my Division to be in charge of the Touri case. From what we've found, Touri was originally a member of Hitsugaya's Division, but was banished due to rebellion issues. Touri was only a Tenth seat himself; it should be easy for a single Divison to dispatch him."

"Then why would Zaraki-taichou want to be affiliated with the case?"

Ichigo shrugged, the movement dull and placid against the dark backdrop of crystal gray behind him. "You know Zaraki; he's just waiting for an opportunity to shed blood since Sou-taichou's forbidden him from taking assasination cases."

Dark violet eyes turned in sudden suspicision. "Ichigo... Are you really going to sign the release form for Zaraki-taichou?"

The Kurosaki shook his head in an emphatic dissent. "From what I hear, he'll sic his whole Division on the guy." Ochre-hued eyes turned sharply on Tatsuki. Fingers formerly splayed across the various assorted files on the desk now clenched in new vigor. "I'm trusting you with this case, Tatsuki. The responsibilities belong to you; I'll just keep bastards like Zaraki away from this."

: x x x x x :

The moon waned, a single dark crescent in the sky, surrounded by wisps of clouds moistened with rain.

"You have to leave, Daiyo." A single voice penetrated the silence that permeated the world. "Kutosuchi-taichou and Zaraki-taichou are after you; you won't get away in time if you keep loitering about."

Crystal aquamarine eyes glanced back at the figure in frank surprise. "Loitering? Hasn't Kurosaki-taichou told you why I was in the Eastern Hemisphere yesterday?"

A pause. "They're going to kill me, Tatsuki." The voice was strangely calm - would have been a perfect balm on the nerves, if only his words hadn't been so viciously threatening; danger glinted in insane cerulean eyes.

"Tell them it was a mistake." Tatsuki ventured to say. "Tell them you never meant to... They'll forgive you if you had a fuka-taichou vouching you."

He smiled wanly at her, the smile coarse and fake in the broken moonlight. "Your reputation would be in disrepair if you did that," he retorted. "It's far better to just let them execute me, isn't it?"

"I can't allow that." They'd been friends before, hadn't they? "Just promise them that you'll never do it again. Tell them that you're sorry. If I vouch for you... The worst that'll happen to you is probation for a year... That's it! They won't kill you if you just say it's a mistake, that you'll never do it again..."

"But I'm not sorry." The figure smiled. "Remember, Tatsuki? I'm the DT Killer of Twentieth. They won't forgive me, and even if they tried to..." His head was tipped back towards the sky - she could never forget that picture of grace - as he laughed. "...I wouldn't let them."

The soft dreary words... that echoed so easily, so quickly, in the darkness of night...

Something in her froze, crystallizing over in a surreal burst of quiet fear.

"What do you mean?" Her words sounded wonderfully controlled, despite the turmoil that brewed within her.

"I would kill them." An angelic smile was superimposed on his harsh features. "And if they find it within themselves to forgive them again..." His eyes hardened into diamond slits. "...You know what I'd do."

Her eyes darted across the street. Empty. She had sent her patrol on another wild goose hunt in the Eastern Hemisphere. They were in the Northern Hemisphere. "Would you kill me, then?"

A pause constricted the atmosphere, as the figure before her paused, calculating, and analyzing. And then he bowed his head, apologetically. "I might, though I'd live to regret it, I know."

"And why?" Her voice restored some semblance of order to this chaos... Her head throbbed painfully even as she spoke.

"To prove to the Shinigami that I'm not below killing a vice-captain to get my point across."

She lost her footing as she stepped backwards; the street curb mocked her with its cruel simplicity.

"Would you really?"

He was cruel, unforgiving, a killer...

"I would." Disinterested aquamarine eyes turned away, averted from her gaze. He stepped forward, head haloed in the grim yellow streetlights above.

Picturing him now, preserving him forever in this state of madness, as he finally unveiled everything - Something changed within her.

Tatsuki closed her eyes for a moment, before snapping them open – violet orbs of color glowing eerily at the dead of night. Her eyes devoid of mercy to the being before her, she stated a few precise words, as the innermost being of her soul wondered if she truly meant it… "Then I'm sorry."

And she found herself slipping just a bit closer into the darkness with him.

: x x x x :

"Patrol has been completed. A disturbance has been noted in the Northern Hemisphere." A shaken pause. "Mission status successful. Touri Daiyo has been assasinated."

Anddd... that ends this chapter. This chapter covers the aftermath of the whole Daiyo-Tatsuki thing. Next chapter will be on what happened before, histories, blah blah blah.

I got alotta help from a partial "aquantice/friend" and, of course, Aiko HanaKai. :D Great work and brilliant writers. Thank you!

Leave a review and have a nice day~! :D